Deceit may have immediate promises of gain, but when it's all over it brings misery and failure.

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Sunday, July 27th

Today's Daily Verse is found in Proverbs 20.17

" Bread of deceit is sweet to a man; but afterwards his mouth shall be filled with gravel."

Let's tackle the word "deceit" first...

It includes our deceiving others, and our being deceived.

What does the word "deceit" mean?

"Deceit is the action or practice of deceiving someone by concealing or misrepresenting the truth..."

Right from the start, let us look at our vulnerability...

2 Corinthians 11.3 Paul the Apostle had a grave concern...

"But I fear that somehow your pure and undivided devotion to Christ will
be corrupted, just as Eve was deceived by the cunning ways of the
serpent."

Paul had a right to be concerned. We all are vulnerable!

Eve was deceived as the truth behind the offer of fruit was concealed...

What was the deception?

The serpent lied when he said that GOD was withholding "wisdom" from Adam and Eve

It tasted so sweet to Eve as she ate the forbidden fruit

Sweet! Until they took the bait - and were driven out of the garden - ended up bitter indeed!

Satan always holds out the bait...always promising "gain" or "pleasure"...

Those who use bait know what bait is effective for each kind of fish. The more deceptive the bait, the more fish they catch...

And what do you get when we "get hooked" by Satan's "lying" lures?

Heartache - Lot's of it!

Wine can do that...

Proverbs 23.31-32

"Don’t gaze at the wine, seeing how red it is, how it sparkles in the cup, how smoothly it goes down.32 For in the end it bites like a poisonous snake; it stings like a viper."

Achan's deception...

The sweet bait of stealing became bitterness to Achan...

Joshua 7.21-24 "Among the plunder I saw a beautiful robe from Babylon, 200 silver coins, and a bar of gold weighing more than a pound.
I wanted them so much that I took them. They are hidden in the ground
beneath my tent, with the silver buried deeper than the rest.”

vs 26 Achan and his family stoned to death and their bodies burned"

Look at Gehazi where the bait was greed...

2 Kings 5.20-27

"But Gehazi, the
servant of Elisha, the man of God, said to himself, “My master should
not have let this Aramean get away without accepting any of his gifts.
As surely as the Lord lives, I will chase after him and get something from him.” 21 So Gehazi set off after Naaman.

When
Naaman saw Gehazi running after him, he climbed down from his chariot
and went to meet him. “Is everything all right?” Naaman asked.

22 “Yes,”
Gehazi said, “but my master has sent me to tell you that two young
prophets from the hill country of Ephraim have just arrived. He would
like 75 pounds of silver and two sets of clothing to give to them.”

23 “By all means, take twice as much
silver,” Naaman insisted. He gave him two sets of clothing, tied up the
money in two bags, and sent two of his servants to carry the gifts for
Gehazi. 24 But when they arrived at the citadel, Gehazi took the gifts from the servants and sent the men back. Then he went and hid the gifts inside the house.

25 When he went in to his master, Elisha asked him, “Where have you been, Gehazi?”

“I haven’t been anywhere,” he replied.

26 But
Elisha asked him, “Don’t you realize that I was there in spirit when
Naaman stepped down from his chariot to meet you? Is this the time to
receive money and clothing, olive groves and vineyards, sheep and
cattle, and male and female servants? 27 Because
you have done this, you and your descendants will suffer from Naaman’s
leprosy forever.” When Gehazi left the room, he was covered with
leprosy; his skin was white as snow."

Jacob

Genesis 27

Jacob Steals Esau’s Blessing

One day when Isaac was old and turning blind, he called for Esau, his older son, and said, “My son.” “Yes, Father?” Esau replied.

2 “I am an old man now,” Isaac said, “and I don’t know when I may die. 3 Take your bow and a quiver full of arrows, and go out into the open country to hunt some wild game for me. 4 Prepare
my favorite dish, and bring it here for me to eat. Then I will
pronounce the blessing that belongs to you, my firstborn son, before I
die.”

5 But Rebekah overheard what Isaac had said to his son Esau. So when Esau left to hunt for the wild game, 6 she said to her son Jacob, “Listen. I overheard your father say to Esau, 7 ‘Bring me some wild game and prepare me a delicious meal. Then I will bless you in the Lord’s presence before I die.’ 8 Now, my son, listen to me. Do exactly as I tell you. 9 Go out to the flocks, and bring me two fine young goats. I’ll use them to prepare your father’s favorite dish. 10 Then take the food to your father so he can eat it and bless you before he dies.”

11 “But look,” Jacob replied to Rebekah, “my brother, Esau, is a hairy man, and my skin is smooth. 12 What if my father touches me? He’ll see that I’m trying to trick him, and then he’ll curse me instead of blessing me.”

13 But his mother replied, “Then let the curse fall on me, my son! Just do what I tell you. Go out and get the goats for me!”

14 So
Jacob went out and got the young goats for his mother. Rebekah took
them and prepared a delicious meal, just the way Isaac liked it. 15 Then she took Esau’s favorite clothes, which were there in the house, and gave them to her younger son, Jacob. 16 She covered his arms and the smooth part of his neck with the skin of the young goats. 17 Then she gave Jacob the delicious meal, including freshly baked bread.

18 So Jacob took the food to his father. “My father?” he said. “Yes, my son,” Isaac answered. “Who are you—Esau or Jacob?”

19 Jacob
replied, “It’s Esau, your firstborn son. I’ve done as you told me. Here
is the wild game. Now sit up and eat it so you can give me your
blessing.”

21 Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Come closer so I can touch you and make sure that you really are Esau.” 22 So Jacob went closer to his father, and Isaac touched him. “The voice is Jacob’s, but the hands are Esau’s,” Isaac said. 23 But he did not recognize Jacob, because Jacob’s hands felt hairy just like Esau’s. So Isaac prepared to bless Jacob. 24 “But are you really my son Esau?” he asked. “Yes, I am,” Jacob replied.

25 Then
Isaac said, “Now, my son, bring me the wild game. Let me eat it, and
then I will give you my blessing.” So Jacob took the food to his father,
and Isaac ate it. He also drank the wine that Jacob served him. 26 Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Please come a little closer and kiss me, my son.”

27 So
Jacob went over and kissed him. And when Isaac caught the smell of his
clothes, he was finally convinced, and he blessed his son. He said, “Ah!
The smell of my son is like the smell of the outdoors, which the Lord has blessed!

28 “From the dew of heaven and the richness of the earth, may God always give you abundant harvests of grain and bountiful new wine. 29 May many nations become your servants, and may they bow down to you. May you be the master over your brothers, and may your mother’s sons bow down to you. All who curse you will be cursed, and all who bless you will be blessed.”

30 As soon as Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, and almost before Jacob had left his father, Esau returned from his hunt. 31 Esau
prepared a delicious meal and brought it to his father. Then he said,
“Sit up, my father, and eat my wild game so you can give me your
blessing.”

33 Isaac
began to tremble uncontrollably and said, “Then who just served me wild
game? I have already eaten it, and I blessed him just before you came.
And yes, that blessing must stand!”

34 When Esau heard his father’s words, he let out a loud and bitter cry. “Oh my father, what about me? Bless me, too!” he begged.

35 But Isaac said, “Your brother was here, and he tricked me. He has taken away your blessing.”

36 Esau exclaimed, “No wonder his name is Jacob, for now he has cheated me twice. First he took my rights as the firstborn, and now he has stolen my blessing. Oh, haven’t you saved even one blessing for me?”

37 Isaac
said to Esau, “I have made Jacob your master and have declared that all
his brothers will be his servants. I have guaranteed him an abundance
of grain and wine—what is left for me to give you, my son?”

38 Esau pleaded, “But do you have only one blessing? Oh my father, bless me, too!” Then Esau broke down and wept.

39 Finally, his father, Isaac, said to him, “You will live away from the richness of the earth, and away from the dew of the heaven above. 40 You will live by your sword, and you will serve your brother. But when you decide to break free, you will shake his yoke from your neck.”

Jacob Flees to Paddan-Aram

41 From
that time on, Esau hated Jacob because their father had given Jacob the
blessing. And Esau began to scheme: “I will soon be mourning my
father’s death. Then I will kill my brother, Jacob.”

42 But
Rebekah heard about Esau’s plans. So she sent for Jacob and told him,
“Listen, Esau is consoling himself by plotting to kill you. 43 So listen carefully, my son. Get ready and flee to my brother, Laban, in Haran. 44 Stay there with him until your brother cools off. 45 When
he calms down and forgets what you have done to him, I will send for
you to come back. Why should I lose both of you in one day?”

46 Then
Rebekah said to Isaac, “I’m sick and tired of these local Hittite
women! I would rather die than see Jacob marry one of them.”

Genesis 42.36-38

"Jacob exclaimed, “You
are robbing me of my children! Joseph is gone! Simeon is gone! And now
you want to take Benjamin, too. Everything is going against me!”

37 Then
Reuben said to his father, “You may kill my two sons if I don’t bring
Benjamin back to you. I’ll be responsible for him, and I promise to
bring him back.”

38 But
Jacob replied, “My son will not go down with you. His brother Joseph is
dead, and he is all I have left. If anything should happen to him on
your journey, you would send this grieving, white-haired man to his
grave."

Here is Jacob, a true servant of GOD living with the results of his deception of getting the blessing wrongfully...

Jacob was chastened and forced to endure many troubles to the end of his life. He had taken the "bait" and was paying dearly for it...

Sin starts "sweet to the taste" - but always ends in "bitterness and strife."

Holiness is sweet at the beginning, during, and at the end of the way. We must walk in His righteousness. Godliness is important.

May we all strive to deal with the "smallest violation" - and live lives that do not "grieve the Holy Spirit of GOD"

Ephesians 4.30 "And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice."

I like the NLT translation..."And do not bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own, guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption.

31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior."

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See you tomorrow...

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